UK Parliament told media ‘confuses’ public about climate by allowing ‘debate’

Greenwise Business reports:

The media is confusing the public about climate change because of its propensity for ‘debate’ induced coverage, a leading media scientist told a committee of MPs today.

Professor Greg Philo said there was “an enormous amount of confusion” about climate change among the public because “TV likes to have a debate – they will bring a scientist on and a skeptic on because they want to generate a debate.” The Professor of Communications and Social Change from Glasgow University also said the media should do more to communicate the impact of energy risks, such as blackouts, on people’s every day lives.

Philo was providing evidence to the Science and Technology Committee, which is carrying out an inquiry into the accuracy of media reports on climate science. It follows a report published by the Committee last year, entitled ‘Devil’s Bargain? Energy Risks and the Public’, in which it concluded “more could be done to improve risk communication of scientific matters in the media.”

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http://junkscience.com/2013/06/19/uk-parliament-told-media-confuses-public-about-climate-by-allowing-debate/